[1] The current building was commissioned to replace a 16th century town hall in Church Lane which still stands and is now known as the "Court House".

[4] Lady Marian Alford was closely involved in the initiative to establish the new town hall[4] and a site was selected for the new building which had previously been occupied by the offices and stables of a firm of London carriers.

[4] The new building, which was designed by Edward Buckton Lamb in the Gothic Revival style was financed by public subscription and completed in 1859.

These plans were stopped by a ten-year citizens' campaign, supported by local people Graham Greene, Richard Mabey and Antony Hopkins, during the late 1970s and early 1980s, which eventually ended at the High Court.

[4] After the shopping arcade fell out of use, the market hall was converted for restaurant use in 1998, and after some years as "Cafe Uno" and then being re-branded as "Brasserie Chez Gérard" in 2007, it became "Carluccios" in 2012 and "the Copper House" in 2019.